Dear Ana,
Today you turn thirty months old, and now we will be telling the truth when we tell people that you are “two and a half” whenever someone asks your age. Although you are always quick to add, “I’m gonna have a birthday! In December! And then I am gonna be THREE!!” Which of course, is accompanied by you thrusting three tiny fingers into their face. The thought of being three excites you to no end, but I have to admit the thought of how quickly you are growing up truly scares me. Can’t you just slow down a bit?!


The big news this month is that we finally got around to painting your “big girl” room. And we could not have done it without your help! We moved your Daddy’s office downstairs a couple months back, knowing that there would be lots of things to do to get you moved out of the nursery and into your new room. The most daunting task of all was the painting. See, the office was red and we wanted your room to be yellow. Not wanting to end up with an orange room, we had to prime everything before painting the actual color. So one week while your Daddy was out of town on business, you and I went to Home Depot and bought all the supplies we needed, then once you went to bed, I painted the ceiling and primed the entire room (your Nana even helped one night!). Then once Daddy was back, he didn’t have any excuses to help us paint and we all worked hard and got it finished over Memorial Day weekend!


Hearing horror stories from our friends and family about moving their toddlers from their crib to a bed, we had no idea what to expect with you. But as with everything else, you were amazing. You were so excited from months of us talking up your big girl bed, that you just climbed right up, told us good night and went to sleep…without escaping once! In fact, for the first week or so, you didn’t even climb out of bed once you woke up, but rather called out to me, “Mama! I woke up! I’m in my big girl bed!” until I came and got you. Now you realize it’s ok to get out of bed (once it’s time to wake up, of course) and have startled me on more than one occasion as you move quietly through the house and then all of a sudden you are beside me. Don’t you know you take years off of my life every time you sneak up on me like that?!



Since you are two and a half now, and oh-so-very-grown-up, we decided it was time we got you your very own scooter. For months you have been telling us, “when I get bigger I can have a scooter” as you stare longingly at the children scooting on by down the street. So I took you to the fancy toy store and let you pick one out. Naturally, you chose the pink one and fell in love with it instantly. You really inherited your father’s athletic ability because you jumped right on that scooter and took off without waiting for me to offer any instruction.



A couple weekends ago your Daddy took you with him to go hiking around Jenkins Estate. While you had a great time exploring the great outdoors, you kept saying, “I just can’t wait to go camping.” While the two things compliment each other very well, you don’t have to do them together. But since the weather was so nice, we thought why not?! However it happened to be Memorial Day weekend and there was almost no chance anything would still be available. So we did the next best thing; we went camping in our own back yard. We had recently bought an outdoor fire pit, so we even got to roast marshmallows before retiring to our sleeping bags for the night. While you have been camping since you were less than six months old, this was the first time we didn’t have you sleep in your Pack ‘N Play, but rather in your own sleeping bag. You would have done great if we had actually bought you an air mattress, but we skimped and just picked up a pool mattress and you kept slipping off. Around 3am, when you had fallen off for the third time, you said, “I wanna go sleep in my bed.” and we all went inside. Trust me, when we go camping for real this summer, we will make sure you have a proper air mattress since your bed will be much further than 30 feet away.



We have been having an unseasonably warm spring and several times have had the luxury of being able to play in the pool and sprinkler. I am very happy to report that your love of the water is still going strong. I was worried you might need a little coaxing to get into the water, at least initially, but I’ve actually had to resort to bribery to get you out of the water…more often than I care to admit.



When you aren’t playing outside, you are letting your imagination run wild inside. I am constantly overhearing a steady stream of narration as you go about your day. You talk to your dolls, your stuffed animals, your toys, the dogs, and more than everyone else put together, you talk to me. All day long with the talking. Don’t get me wrong, I love it, and it is my largest source of entertainment through the day. Your “Ana-isms” keep me (and most of my friends on Twitter and Facebook) laughing and smiling long after the conversation occurred. Your understanding of the world around you blows my mind and the fact that I am easily able to follow your thought process proves that you are more like me each and every day.



Not that there was any doubt that you and I have lots of things in common. You want to do everything that I am doing and are therefore always helping me with the cooking and cleaning. I figure if we start early enough by time I have another child you should be able to handle most of the cooking and cleaning on your own. I mean, you vacuum more than most men, you can make a mean pink cupcake, and can order carry out like nobody’s business. What else is there?!



While I am totally teasing about you having to run the household, I am sure you would step up to the challenge with impressive skill. You are always amazing me and pushing your limits further than I would have ever though possible for someone your age. You are the best daughter I could have ever imagined. All I can say is you’ve set the bar pretty high, kiddo. Thank you for always striving to be your personal best and making sure that, in turn, I work to be the best Mama I can be. You make me feel like I can conquer the world. And I will, Ana, I will do it all for you.


All my love,
Mama

Dear Ana,
Today you turn twenty-nine months old. (That was really bizarre to write out because that means you are now older in months than I am in years.) You are growing so fast that I can hardly keep up. Before I know it, it’s time to write you another letter. If that weren’t enough, you are constantly telling me that you are a “big girl” and whenever you see something you want (that by some small miracle you don’t already have) you reassure me, “I can have that when I get a little bit bigger.”


One of the more defining characteristics about you this month is how inquisitive you are. You are always studying everything, curious how the world around you works. You have started really questioning things and I am always surprised by the questions you are able to come up with on your own. Then once I provide a satisfactory answer, you always say, “Oh! I see what you’re talking about!” I have recently started trying to turn the game around on you and I ask if you know the answer. You resoundingly say, “Yeah.” Then you pause, thinking about it and whisper, “Can you tell me?”


You are constantly following me around and watching my every move. You sit, mesmerized, while I get ready in the morning and when I ask you what you are doing you simply state, “I’m just watching you.” It’s like you are studying for an important exam and you don’t want to miss a single thing for fear you might get something wrong. But you also use this approach to get out of doing certain things. To stall eating dinner you say, “but I’m watching you.” As if watching me eat lasagna is so important you can’t be bothered to finish your peas. While I’m flattered that you find my every move so fascinating, I am pretty sure you can multi-task enough to do both things at once.



As is only natural, your following me around and bombarding me with questions occurs while I am cooking as well. I have decided to use this to my advantage, and to your delight I appointed you my little kitchen helper. I try to set out and pre-measure all the ingredients ahead of time. This indulges my OCD while simultaneously allowing you to help me in the kitchen. See? We both win!



Just the other day you were helping me make some chocolate chip cookies and I remembered that we had bought you a little apron to go with your play kitchen. So I located your apron and we set to work. It was only then that you realized that I would also need an apron and you quickly climbed down from the stool to dig my apron out of the drawer. It was very fortunate that we were both wearing aprons for this particular baking adventure because shortly after that you accidentally turned the KitchenAid to the highest speed and flour and chocolate chips flew out of the mixing bowl. I looked over to see how you were going to react when to my surprise you burst into giggles. Eventually you managed to squeal out, “That was SO funny!”



We recently started a huge project this month, which has taken up a lot of our free time. We decided to tear down the old play structure in our yard and put up a new Rainbow All American Double Decker play structure. Anytime we had decent weather we were outside taking apart, clearing, organizing, or assembling something. You were there for the entire process. And not just as a distraction either. You legitimately wanted to help out. We always tried to set aside tasks you could handle and whenever we were taking a break or moved on to another project you would pick up our abandoned tools and start working on the harder jobs as well. I gotta say, you have quite the impressive work ethic!




You are an incredibly happy child. You are always giggling or laughing, which is very contagious and eventually everyone around you is smiling right with you. You have a very sweet personality and love to hug and cuddle. Whenever either your Daddy or I are holding you and the other is close by you declare, “Family hug!” and we instantly cuddle together for the best hugs imaginable. While I know the majority of the appeal of the family hug is the affection, I know a small part of you just relishes in the fact that you can boss us around and on this particular command we actually follow your orders.


We got a surprise visit from your Aunt Darcie and Baby Silas last week. Darcie decided to take a drive up to “the big city” and the four of us went out to lunch. We had a great time chatting and you proudly showed off all your new tricks. Then we came back to our house so she could feed Silas and you could take a nap. We practically had to pry him out of your hands. You have such a great love for babies and it’s wonderful to have a little one around. Eventually he’s going to get bigger and stronger and he won’t let you squeeze and cuddle him as much. Before you know it, those soft cooing babies grow into bouncing toddlers who are constantly talking. Trust me. I know this from experience.

But for all the things you aren’t any longer, you’ve replaced them with things that are so much better. Of course I miss rocking you to sleep, but now we read stories together and you are able to remember the words and “read” them to me. Instead of singing you a lullaby to calm you down, you now request specific songs and sing along with me. Now when I dress you in the morning instead of me just picking out the cutest thing I can find, you help me decide what you want to wear, adding, “This is so adorable. Where’d you get this?” I have to remind myself all the time that you are only going to be this way once and to cherish every day we spend together. I know these moments are fleeting so I will gladly stop what I am doing to scoop you up in my arms, snuggle my nose at your neck and whisper, “I love you.”


All my love,
Mama